What Does 2 Chronicles 29:14 Mean?
And of the sons of Heman, Jehiel and Shimei. And of the sons of Jeduthun, Shemaiah and Uzziel.
Key words are shown with the Hebrew or Greek and what each word meant.
Selah Decoded Version The Selah Decoded Version renders what the Hebrew and Greek words meant to the people who first heard them.
King James wording
King James Version
And of the sons of Heman; Jehiel, and Shimei: and of the sons of Jeduthun; Shemaiah, and Uzziel.THE KEY
Shimei and Shemaiah carry the same Hebrew root for hearing, so the roster writes hearing into two family lines.
THE MEANING
Here, the names are more than labels: Shimei and Shemaiah both carry the seed of hearing, and Heman’s name carries firmness. The verse holds these meanings within shared lineages of service, where hearing and steadiness belong to a people together.
THE ROOT
שִׁמְעִי
Shim'i
GROWS FROM
שמע
sh-m-ʿ
To hear, heed, or receive what is heard.
Shimei’s name grows from the root שמע, and Shemaiah carries that same root in the neighboring family line. The English preserves them as separate names, while Hebrew lets their shared seed of hearing come through.
ALSO GROWS
shama: To hear or listen.
שָׁמַע
This is the root’s direct action, linking both names to hearing.
shemuah: A report or message that has been heard.
שְׁמוּעָה
This branch shows hearing extending into what is received and carried onward.
הֵימָן
Heman
GROWS FROM
אמן
ʾ-m-n
To be firm, steady, or reliable.
Heman’s name is associated with the root אמן, the seed of firmness and steadiness. The same root appears in emunah, where trust is weight placed on what is firm.
ALSO GROWS
amen: Firm; truly; so be it.
אָמֵן
The word affirms something as steady and trustworthy.
emunah: Steadiness or trust.
אֱמוּנָה
This branch reveals the root’s movement from firmness into reliance.
עֻזִּיאֵל
Uzziel
GROWS FROM
עזז
ʿ-z-z
To be strong or mighty.
Uzziel’s name joins strength with El, God: “my strength is God.” The name places strength within a relationship, rather than presenting it as self-contained.
ALSO GROWS
oz: Strength or might.
עֹז
This is the strength element carried in Uzziel’s name.
az: Strong or fierce.
עָז
This branch describes the quality of strength expressed in the name.
THE PATTERN
Hearing becomes a relationship when what is received draws out a response.
Hear and respond, O Israel. The LORD our God is one LORD.And the LORD came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak, for your servant hears and responds.My sheep hear and respond to my voice, and I perceive them, and they follow me.THE THREAD
And the LORD came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak, for your servant hears and responds.Shimei and Shemaiah carry the Hebrew root שמע (shama, hear), and Samuel’s “heareth” comes from that same root. In the names, hearing is carried through a family line; in Samuel’s answer, it becomes a response.
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